The Red Buds Are Abloom

It’s getting warmer. Knitting is getting harder. I never get tired of knitting, but I’m having some motivation issues. I hope this post will serve as an impetus to finish something I’ve put to the side for a while. If you check out the list of what I’ve knitted over the winter, maybe you’ll see what my problem is.

Glove 1- Broccus, frogged
Glove 1- Broccus, frogged, again.
Glove 1- Broccus
Glove 2- Broccus
Glove 3- Broccus for Rachel
Glove 4 -Broccus for Rachel
Glove 5- Red Bud
Glove 6- Red Bud
Sascha hat
Arbuckle hat
Bergen Street Cardigan
Glove 7- Red Bud for knitpicks
Capital Scarflette
County Line Kerchief

So… What’s missing? That’s right, a glove. Somehow it only took  NINE tries for me to loose interest in this pattern. Tenacity? No, more likely it’s a sign of insanity. The time has come. I’ve got to finish it. It will be a good thing to do while I waiting for more yarn to come in the mail.

The moment I lost motivation coincides with the day it became too warm to wear gloves. It’s a confusing time for any knitter. Spring is so inspiring for creative people! Unfortunately, the irony of this particular brand of creative is that it’s so darn warm. Oh well, I’ll take what I can get.

I actually really like this pattern. I originally designed it so I would have something to do over our Christmas trip home to Oklahoma. I wanted something bright and cheery to light up the winter doldrums. Whenever I think of this glove pattern I remember sitting on my Mother-in-law’s couch drinking cup after cup of coffee with my dear old friend Elise. Ahh, the good times!

I’ve got  an amazing incentive to finish this set of gloves. Knitpicks.com has accepted the pattern into their independent designer program. As soon as I’m finished, I’ll send them off to Knitpicks to be photographed on a model, and I can start making some money from pattern sales. You can already buy the pattern here on my website.

Let’s hope that since I wrote it down, I’ll feel responsible to finish it. I know what I’ll be doing this weekend!

begin with the beginning.

So here it is. My first blog post. This is intimidating stuff, folks! I suppose I should explain myself and my intentions here, right? I want to use this blog as a forum to share my passion for knitting and pattern design. I’ll start with a little about myself. So this is my life story as it pertains to fibers.

I started designing my own patterns about 30 seconds after I learned how to cast on, but before that I learned how to sew. In the 8th grade, I learned how to make a pair of boxer shorts in home economics, and thought I might just be able to take over the world! It wasn’t long before, my dear sweet mother, with an instinct sharper than even my beloved gingher scissors, gave me her old Bernina 830 sewing machine.

I started sewing everything. In high school I would borrow my friends jeans and copy the patterns. There were prom dresses and Halloween costumes and a veritable MOUNTAIN of pajama pants. I’d stay up all hours of the night figuring out how to fit a collar, working out a welt pocket, or finding out just how big I could make my silly bell bottoms with looking too weird. At 16, I needed a more “social” craft, so I typed “how to knit” into a search engine. I would bring my needles to a party and knit coasters for the host and koozies for the guests. I was an odd duck to say the least!

I got a part time job at Hancock Fabrics Store my senior year of high school, and I really thought I had made it. Hancock’s kept the better part of the paychecks they issued me all the way through college too. I graduated with a degree in fine art (painting and pottery) and immediately put that degree to work. I spent 2 blissful years painting my brains out in my beautiful little studio in the deep woods outside of Norman, Oklahoma. Then my husband was offered a job in New York City, and we decided move!

Moving to the city was the hardest, most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. Now that I’m here, I’m as happy as a clam! I’ve got a sunny little apartment in Brooklyn, a great job, and some wonderful friends. As a textile print designer by day, and a hand knit designer by night, it’s hard, but I also find time to paint too (check it). There’s not a minute to lose! I’ll be sharing my knitting adventures with you all here on my blog.